


Seven Ways to Hell

by addledwalrus



Category: Original Work
Genre: Anger, Betrayal, Bonfires, Break Up, Child Abuse, Cocaine, Comfort Food, Corruption, Depression, Destruction, Domestic Disputes, Drug Dealing, Drug Use, Dysfunctional Relationships, Emotional Baggage, Father-Daughter Relationship, Fire, Gen, Gluttony, Growing Up, Hatred, High School, Horny Teenagers, Illegitimacy, Infidelity, Insanity, Jealousy, Loss of Control, Loss of Innocence, Lust, Money, Narcissism, Organized Crime, Poverty, Pride, Prison, Promiscuity, Rage, Relationship Issues, Restaurants, Revenge, Role Models, Self-Hatred, Seven Deadly Sins, Sexual Content, Sexual Harassment, Sibling Rivalry, Siblings, Suburbia, Swearing, Unrequited Love, Violent Thoughts, Weight Gain
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-23
Updated: 2017-03-02
Packaged: 2018-09-26 10:31:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 2,569
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9890306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/addledwalrus/pseuds/addledwalrus
Summary: As the title suggests, seven short stories about the deadly sins.





	1. Lust

**Author's Note:**

> I know that this idea has been done to death, but I've always wanted to explore it myself.

**September 1955**

It was the start of another school year for seventeen year old Ross Thompson and the sight of pretty young birds in the hallway only made him more excited about what lay ahead.

A couple of friends soon joined him in ogling the girls and their casual small talk quickly turned towards how easy each one was.

Ross' attention fell on the golden haired Betty and her pink poodle skirt. There was no doubt in his mind that she was the most attractive of the group, not to mention the strong feeling he had that underneath the pure and wholesome exterior, lay something truly wild and uncontrollable.

The other boys noticed where his gaze was directed and they began urging him to make a move before she left their sight for good.

Ross relented with a sigh and cockily made his way towards her, rolling both sleeves up so that she would hopefully see his strong arms.

He noticed her eyes shift a little to the side as he approached, though it came as a huge disappointment when she promptly turned her head back around and strode away in a haughty manner.

"Hey!" He called out in disbelief before giving chase, completely unwilling to let such a prize get away so easily.

She continued to walk straight without a response, so in an act of desperation, he resorted to the one tactic that was bound to get a reaction from even the most indifferent of girls.

Sure enough, she spun around in shock as soon as his hand collided with her backside and he grinned in triumph, only to receive a stinging slap to the face.

"Bastard!" She cried, stamping down on his foot for extra measure before charging off at top speed.


	2. Gluttony

**Late 1967**

Elizabeth Dupont, or Betty as most people knew her, had quite the reputation in her neighborhood as a dutiful and loyal housewife. There wasn't a single week during which she would miss church and she always made a huge effort to look attractive for the sake of her husband.

All that began to change when he had to suddenly leave one week for business in another city and though Betty had some suspicions, the man's desperation seemed unmatched as he ranted about how urgent the matter was.

As such, she was left to manage the house and look after their two children alone, while receiving an envelope full of cash each Saturday.

The stress of all the new responsibilities took their toll on her leisure time as well as sense of control and before she knew it, she was turning to food and drink to put herself at ease.

It would so happen that whenever she went out shopping, the sight of iced cakes on display in a bakery window proved too tempting to resist and she'd end up buying as many as her budget allowed.

At home, she would wait until the children were either absorbed in some game or lying asleep in bed, to help herself to an extra serving of dessert, underestimating the effect it would have on her weight.

The weeks went by and her beloved husband returned home from his business trip, only to be met with a shocking sight when she came out to greet him.

"Betty, what's happened to you?!" He demanded to know, instinctively extending his hands so that the distance between them matched the width of her once slender waist.

"Is something wrong, Francis?" She replied irritably with a subtle arch of her eyebrows, failing to notice the reason behind his disappointment.

"Yes! You were thin and beautiful when I left, now you're just another dumpy old housewife..."

The remark seemed like a harsh insult to Betty and she frowned before placing both hands against her hips in anger.

"Well, if you don't like me anymore, why don't you go find someone else? Nobody said you couldn't!"


	3. Greed

**1961**

"Please take a seat, Mr Bukowski." The police officer instructed, motioning towards the empty seat in such a way that made George feel a little offended.

 _"What do you take me for? Some idiot?"_ The twenty three year old thought as he did was told, sitting down and waiting for the other man to speak again.

"So, I believe you possess valuable knowledge concerning the whereabouts and operations of these counterfeiters?"

"That... that's right, sir."

"There's no need to be afraid, young man. You are currently in the safety of this station and we do appreciate your courage in doing the right thing."

George took a deep breath and looked straight into the officer's eyes before making the fateful decision to reveal all he knew, even if it meant betraying his colleagues, some of whom had grown up with him in the same neighborhood, in exchange for financial reward.

By the time that the meeting was over, the young man found himself walking out through the door towards an uncertain future. Nevertheless, that still didn't deter him from making a silent vow concerning his life ambitions.

_"If I get out of this mess alive, I swear that I'll buy myself a big house and find a nice lady. It's about time I made my poor old mother proud."_

* * *

**1986**

Iron bars partially obscured George's view as he spent another morning languishing in his cell, deeply regretting his return to crime and knowing that his family's trust in him had probably been permanently destroyed.

His daughter visited one afternoon and looking into her disillusioned eyes, he was reminded of how his late wife had looked in the weeks leading up to her untimely death.

"Dad..." The eighteen year old murmured in despair while staring at him blankly. "...why?"

George sighed and lowered his head in remorse, wanting nothing more than to hide the ugly truth from the young girl. He knew however, that it was now much too late to hide such matters any longer.

"Because your Dad's a greedy asshole, that's why..."

"No..."

"You...you know it's true. All those people dead in the newspaper? Some of them were because of me."

A pained whimper escaped the girl's lips and she stood up slowly, before trudging away towards the warden and being escorted out of the cellblock, already half the child she used to be.

 _"I'm so sorry, Lisa..."_ He mentally apologized, burying his face in his hands as a door slammed loudly in the distance and visions of a potent white powder flooded his memory.


	4. Sloth

**March 1975**

Steve Donovan threw his bag to the floor upon entering his house and opened the fridge to find that nothing stood out as particularly appealing. He didn't feel like cooking a proper meal either, so he slammed the white door shut and retired to his bedroom to begin doing homework.

However, reading and answering questions about molecular structure exhausted his mind within the hour and he shoved the pages aside, resigning himself to the belief that he'd never amount to anything.

_"If I'm going to spend the rest of my life in this dump, I may as well be high as a kite while I'm at it..."_

He left his room and returned several minutes later with a crudely rolled joint, before collapsing on the bed and placing one end in his mouth.

He closed his eyes after lighting it up, quickly inhaling then blowing out a long trail of smoke that seemed to resemble a dragon in his eyes.

Such was his familiarity with the substance that it's strong musky smell hardly affected him anymore.

A overpowering sense of calmness came over Steve as his surroundings became irrelevant and his world shrunk solely down to what was directly before him, as well as thoughts of the girl he loved.

His pulse raced at the memory of her bright eyes and pleasant voice, though his heart sank when he realized she hadn't called him in over a week.

However, the grief it brought seemed unreasonable the more he thought about it, especially since it was clear that a girl like her was already stepping over a large boundary by befriending a lowlife such as him.

It was therefore, perfectly natural if she eventually came to her senses and settled for somebody with a more stable home life, whom could also make her feel special and loved, none of which applied to him at all.

The seconds started to rapidly slip by and turn into minutes, which then merged together into hours as the effects of the drug wore off and he returned to the harsh reality of his mother scolding him for failing to prepare dinner.

He rose and entered the kitchen to face her, head lowered in guilt as she began to mumble yet again about how unreliable he was.


	5. Wrath

**July 1970**

Grace forced the closet doors open and with a grunt, she began gathering whatever belonged to her partner so that it could be shoved into the large box at her feet.

Once it was full, she stormed outside in determination while ignoring the concerned voice of her twelve year old son.

The confused stares of some neighbors hardly bothered her as she built a pile of dry wood and doused it with a can of oil.

Her son gained the courage to wonder into the front yard just as she lit a fire that spread rapidly, the fierce light reflecting in the boy's eyes and rendering him temporarily mute.

It wasn't long before the fire seemed to reach just as high as the top of a nearby tree and Grace tossed her husband's clothes into the flames, watching them burn in satisfaction before her sense of disappointment returned.

Somehow, simply destroying his worldly possessions didn't seem like an adequate enough punishment for somebody so unfaithful and to Grace's horror, her malicious thoughts soon turned to the terrified face of her own son.

 _"Do it. His whole_ _existence is unsanctified. Nobody will miss him..."_ A voice inside her head urged, despite her efforts to regain composure.

Grace felt her hand twitch as she looked the boy in the eyes and convinced herself that he was more a curse than a blessing, a daily reminder of how she was trapped in an unholy and stigmatized union with little way of escape.

 _"Unless..."_ She thought, a relieved smile appearing on her face as she extended a shaky hand with the intent of grabbing her son by the hair and pulling his head straight into the flames.

However, her hand stopped just short of starting the move necessary to carry out such a heinous task and she fell to her knees in tears, realizing that all of the boy's features belonged to her and not his poor excuse of a father.

"Steven..." She muttered, raising her head and allowing him to see her reddened eyes. "...I'll do the same to you, if you don't get back inside this instant!"

He nodded meekly and ran out of her sight, leaving her to continue kneeling on the lawn while stewing in the stifling heat, as well as her own hatred and self-loathing.


	6. Envy

**1996**

"What's up, Michelle? Why the long face?" Jared greeted his sister as she entered the living room.

"Nothing, pig." Michelle snapped in response, rolling her eyes in disgust at the way he lay on the floor and batted his eyes in an obnoxious attempt to look cute.

She sat down on the couch and turned on the television, craning her neck to look past Jared's reclining figure, only to feel deep frustration when he began to roll around and sing some song from The Lion King at the top of his squeaky voice.

"Shut up!" She yelled, scaring her brother out of his wits and leaving him to lie in sad silence for the remainder of the program.

Once it was over, Michelle brought herself to glance back at him and felt a pang of guilt upon seeing his watery eyes. She forced herself to suppress the feeling however, when she remembered how such a sweet demeanor had already deceived both of her otherwise steadfast parents.

_"They might have fallen for it, but I know the truth. You're just a little monster in disguise."_

Jared tilted his head to the side as if aware of her thoughts and she shuddered, while resenting his ability to make seemingly any adult fawn over him in adoration.

She reassured herself nevertheless that one day, she'd expose him for what he really was and affection would finally come her way.

* * *

**1997**

After seeing the way his older sister was both respected and feared by those around her, Jared couldn't help but feel unhappy with himself and thus vowed to one day win her admiration no matter what.

As a result, he went out of his way to gradually cultivate a tougher persona by doing such things as pushing his baseball cap to the side, lowering his voice each time he spoke and picking on smaller kids whenever he got the chance.

Weeks passed and despite regularly tuning into The Grind, as well as making it a habit to burp at dinnertime, Michelle's dismissive attitude towards him still showed no sign of change.

What proved to be even worse however, was the way his parents now seemed to look at him in quiet disgust, as it became clear that they missed the way he used to be.

Unfortunately, it was too late to undo the damage, for his uncouth behaviour had unexpectedly won over some powerful friends and their presence provided him with much needed security.


	7. Pride

"You... you don't want me anymore?" Carmen whispered, eyes widening in shock at her boyfriend's unexpected declaration. "But I thought you loved me..."

Noah shrugged and simply leaned back in his chair while placing both hands behind his head.

"I said the same shit to the last girl, you know..."

"What?"

"I don't know where you got that idea. Thiis was never meant to be a long term thing."

"Then why did you call me back?"

"Because you have a great ass."

"A great ass? Is that all I am to you?!"

Carmen lost her temper and stood up to strike Noah in the face, but he grabbed hold of her wrist before she could do so. She winced and struggled for several moments before finally managing to yank her arm free.

"Don't get me wrong. You're gorgeous and sexy, but so are all the other girls here..."

Carmen paused and stared right into his eyes while failing to hold back her tears.

"Motherfucker, you'll regret this..." She hissed, voice trembling as she left the table to unsteadily amble out of the restaurant and hitch a taxi home.

Noah breathed a sigh of relief once she was gone and swiftly got to work contemplating how he'd score his next conquest, despite his growing suspicions that there existed no such woman whom could keep him permanently captivated.

 _"I guess I'm just destined to be a bachelor forever, not that it's a bad thing though..."_ He thought to himself smugly while counting all of his previous girlfriends.

The knowledge that both his mother and sister would grow to despise the life he wished to lead weighed heavily on his mind, though he brushed it off by reminding himself that as females, they had no idea how it was for a wealthy and sharp young man such as him.


End file.
